Syracuse never trails Virginia Tech in straight-set win
Syracuse head coach Leonid Yelin leaned back in his chair, his right leg crossed over his left. Yelin’s typically very active during matches, jumping out of his seat to yell instructions as soon as he sees something that can be improved upon. His emphatic gesturing and vocal directions have become characteristic of Yelin and a staple for the Orange.
On Sunday, however, he was content to sit back and watch as his team routed Virginia Tech — he didn’t call a timeout all game, and when the Hokies did, he was calm. He didn’t appear to have much to tell his players.
“In a tough competition, there comes a time when you almost need the coach to push you a little bit, to give a little bit more,” Yelin said. “They didn’t need it today. They didn’t need it.”
Coming off a five-set victory at Boston College on Wednesday where Polina Shemanova recorded 32 kills, the Orange (10-11, 7-7 Atlantic Coast) entered Sunday’s match on a four-game winning streak. A favorable matchup against second-to-last place Virginia Tech (9-18, 2-12 ACC) allowed SU to pull out a dominant 3-0 win. In the straight-set victory, SU never trailed.
Early in the first set, it was immediately apparent that Virginia Tech would struggle to keep up with the Orange. A kill from middle blocker Abby Casiano that lacked power and appeared to be heading out of bounds was mishandled by a Hokie defender, gifting SU the point and an early lead. That lead continued to grow as juniors Ella Saada and Dana Gardner combined for a pair of blocks that came from weak Virginia Tech kills.
The Orange’s offensive dominance allowed them to secure a 25-17 victory in the first set, and Virginia Tech struggled to generate much offensive production; a first-set hitting percentage of 9.7% encapsulated their woes. SU would record a hit percentage of 38.7% in the first set. Yelin wouldn’t go as far as admitting that the Hokies were a less talented team, though, citing their victory over Louisville three weeks ago as evidence of what they were capable of.
“It’s important to not really look at the other side and just control what you can control as a team,” outside hitter Kendra Lukacs said.
What SU did control was a season-low seven attacking errors and evenly distributed kills. Seven kills from Casiano, paired with 16 from Saada made up for a quiet game from Shemanova, whose 17 kills were her least in the past six games. In the second set, Casiano rose high above the net on numerous occasions and drove the ball straight into the ground, exploiting holes and poor organization from the Virginia Tech defense. Her seven kills tied her career-best, and they came from a mere nine total attacks.
Saada had 27 total attacks, only five fewer than Shemanova — usually, the Orange bombard Shemanova with as many balls as possible; but on Sunday, she had 32 total attacks, her lowest in ACC play this season. SU seemed to spread the ball around with far more success. The team was even able to involve their more inexperienced players, including freshman Berkley Hayes, Izzy Plummer and Lauren Woodford, who appeared in at least two sets.
“It’s always nice when (they can) get playing experience when they’re a little bit younger, so that way they’re a little more comfortable if they have to come in at a crucial time,” assistant coach Derryk Williams said.
The Orange took the second set 25-15, and forfeited only 13 points in the third set, the least they’ve allowed in conference play this year. Libero Aliah Bowllan (18 digs) made a number of diving saves and led a strong all-around defense for SU.
Her efforts kept plays alive, and Williams said Bowllan is the determining factor in the Orange defense. When she’s playing well, the rest of the defensive unit follows.
Early in the season, SU suffered a 3-1 loss to Wake Forest, who has since emerged as the conference’s worst team. Sunday against the second worst team, Syracuse reversed the narrative, appearing confident and assertive. In the midst of a five-game win streak, the Orange are clicking — the team was able to win and make it look easy, something it couldn’t accomplish at the start of the season when they lost six of seven conference matches.
“(Against Wake Forest), I looked on the court and didn’t feel like we were in control at any point. Today, I thought we were in control the entire match,” Williams said of the team’s improvement. “Our girls were confident, yet not cocky and ready to do their jobs, which was the most important thing.”